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Monday, July 2, 2012

Cold Oven Pound Cake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This was a bit of an experiment for me. Cold oven pound cakes have been around for years, but despite my age, I've never made one. Thoughts of shortcake and an abundance of strawberries convinced me it was time to remedy that, so, I decided to give this old, old cake a try. I'm told that recipes for it first appeared in advertising campaigns designed to entice homemakers into replacing wood-fired ovens with the gas stoves that were being introduced to market. Our grandmothers, seduced by cooler kitchens, were probably not interested in the chemistry of the cold oven pound cake, but I'm not going to let you off that easily. The method works for a specific reason. Ovens are preheated in order to give cakes a burst of hot air that allows them to rise. As it turns out, pound cakes are so dense that they don't rise much anyway, so, that initial blast of hot air just isn't necessary. Chemistry aside, when the temperature of the cake batter is allowed to rise along with the oven temperature, it develops a wonderful crust and the interior of the cake will cook completely without burning the outer rim. From the abundance of available recipes, I decided to use the one that had been developed for Cook's Country Magazine. It's an easy recipe and I know from experience that their recipes work. This was no exception and I loved the cake. It was a bit lighter than most pound cakes and it had a wonderful crumb that was more than a match for the delicious crust the recipe produced. I hope all of you will try this cake. It is a keeper. Here's how it is made.

44 comments
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Hello Mary, I was intending to leave a comment on your summer pudding post but this cake jumped right in before I can do so:D Now I am drooling over your very beautiful cake, wish I can have slice right now!

I love pound cake - with or without fruit topping. I find it so satisfying with a cup of tea. I've never heard of a Cold Oven Cake, but I will give this one a try. A stick of butter is a 1/4 pound, isn't it?

Chemistry aside, when the temperature of the cake batter is allowed to rise along with the oven temperature, it develops a wonderful crust and the interior of the cake will cook completely without burning the outer rim.

I never even thought of this, thank you for sharing this bit of science-wisdom! I'll try to put it to good use once we snap out of this heatwave!

I've been eyeing this recipe from America's Test Kitchen online ! .... This is one of the BEST looking pound cake I've seen online ! :D It looks perfectly baked and absolutely delicious ! Wish I could have a taste of that ;D

I've only heard of cold oven pound cakes... I've never had one nor have I even seen one. I honestly, did not know why they called them called oven before.. thank you for the history lesson! The cake looks utterly perfect!

I learn so much from visiting this blog every day---I've never heard about this before, but it sounds like a great idea, especially during this hot weather, I don't want my oven on any more than absolutely necessary!

Funny to think that my mother makes most of her cakes starting with a cold oven... I don't know why!

For the meringues and humidity, it is the same in Auckland Mary, especially in winter, and in a rain forest, (we have over 90% humidity some days, can you imagine that??) so some days are just not meringue days :-). But these macaroons are nice even a bit soft and chewy, so they are a good alternative ;-).

Mary, Pound Cake is one of the basics of life. Eat it alone, with cream, with fruit and whipped cream, with ice cream...it's all good! This is an interesting approach to baking this staple dessert item. Thanks and Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

I made this on the 4th of July for our cookout. It is delish and everyone loved it. Mine came out with same beautiful color as the one pictured here. It is easy to make and so moist. It is for sure on my "keeper forever" list. Thank you for sharing!!

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